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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25008403">Building New Foundations</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Star_Jelly/pseuds/Star_Jelly'>Star_Jelly</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Voltron: Legendary Defender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Tragedy, Angst with a Happy Ending, Comfort, Comfort/Angst, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Trauma</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 05:21:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,252</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25008403</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Star_Jelly/pseuds/Star_Jelly</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Shiro finds out after the end of Voltron’s journey that Adam is still alive. After bringing him back to his home, he takes care of him and hopes to heal some of his psychological wounds as best he can—and hopefully patch things up if possible</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adam/Shiro (Voltron)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Discovery</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I stfg every time I think I’m successfully out of this fandom, I get struck with sudden fic inspiration and I just have to write it out even if it doesn’t go anywhere<br/>Anyway I had another Shiro and Adam fic planned out where I was gonna flesh out their story a bit more than the canon did, but I ended up losing steam after the introduction chapter, but then I came up with this and came up with a lot more material for it. So hopefully I’ll get past the first chapter with this one and I can put this thing to bed—I’m just bitter about how their story panned out and wish it was handled differently<br/>Also please keep in mind that I never got past season 2 so I’m writing this with a very basic understanding of their story. I can’t fully dive back into this fandom again, I just can’t, I’m sorry</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Voltron has just disbanded when Shiro got the call. He still had no idea how this happened, how it was possible. They’d said it was a fluke thing, that it shouldn’t have been possible, that they had no idea, nobody did. But here they were; Adam was alive. After all these years, he’d been alive.<br/>
Shiro wanted an explanation—no, he NEEDED one, he needed to know how the fuck this was possible and how they didn’t know sooner—but as he sprinted down the hall of the Garrison, the only thing that he could focus on was that Adam was alive and he was here, right now. He thought he’d never see him again, but here they were, here HE was, running down that hall faster than he ever had in his life, his heart pounding so hard it nearly hurt.</p><p> </p><p>“We’re still not sure what happened.”<br/>
Shiro was standing in the hall just outside the room where they were keeping him now, being briefed for the situation by a higher up.<br/>
“We think he just barely escaped being killed by that explosion and maybe one of Sendak’s men captured him and held him hostage, but all we can do at this point is theorize. There’s no definitive information. All we know is that we found him in a decimated ship floating out in space just a few days ago.”<br/>
“A few days...” Shiro murmured. “He was here for days and you didn’t tell me?”<br/>
“We had to be sure it wasn’t a trick. We were told not to say anything until we were completely certain.”<br/>
Shiro was finding it harder and harder to sit still. “Can I see him? Please?”<br/>
The higher up paused before taking a breath. “Yes, of course.”<br/>
He slowly pushed the door open and Shiro stepped inside.<br/>
There he was.<br/>
Oh god, there he was.<br/>
Shiro was shaken to his core. Adam looked so fucking broken; face scarred, eyes glazed over, face void of any emotion, just sitting on the metal exam table.<br/>
Shiro crossed the room in two steps and stopped in front of him.<br/>
“Adam...Adam, it’s me.” He put his hands on both sides of his face. Adam didn’t respond.<br/>
“Adam, it’s me, Shiro. Talk to me, please.” Still nothing. Given the faraway look in his eyes, Shiro didn’t even know if he could hear him.<br/>
“He’s been like this since we discovered him. This can happen in some instances of trauma. We figure it would be best to wait and see if he speaks again, but if it lasts more than a few months, we’ll need to look into therapy for him.”<br/>
Shiro bit his lip, hands not leaving Adam’s face, and shut his eyes tight as tears threatened to spill. “Adam...I’m so sorry.”<br/>
The higher up continued, either not sensing Shiro’s distress or pressing on in spite of it, though Shiro liked to hope it was the latter.<br/>
“Given that you were closest with him, we figured it would be best for you to look after him. If you agree, we’ll need to send someone to look at your living area and make sure it’s fit for two people to live in, especially one in Adam’s state, but if you’re uncomfortable with the idea of caring for him, we can send him to live with a higher up—“<br/>
“No! No, I want to take him with me.”<br/>
“Very well. We’ll have your house looked at tomorrow and if it checks out, we’ll send him home with you the day after. We need you to monitor his condition for the next 3 months and report back to us at the end of every week. If there is no discernible improvement or any consistent negative changes, we will look into intensive therapy—though it’s a given that he’ll need it regardless—and possibly medication.”<br/>
Shiro nodded, eyes continuously shifting between the man speaking and Adam, who hadn’t moved an inch. In that instant, looking at his past fiancé, he was hoping with every part of him that he could give Adam what he needed. He hoped that he could make up for not doing so all those years ago. He just wanted to make up for it, to do right by Adam. And he was hoping now that he would be able to.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The First Day Back</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The sound of the door creaking open filled the empty apartment and Shiro stepped in, Adam in tow. He led him in carefully, a hand on his upper back. He felt bad treating him like this, like he was helpless, but he wouldn’t move without help. He still wasn’t responding either. Shiro knew this would take time but he still couldn’t help but worry.<br/>
He led him to the couch and carefully sat him down.<br/>
“So...this is it.” Shiro began awkwardly, shoving his hand in his pocket. Damn it, what was he supposed to say? “They said I should move the guest bed to my room so I can keep an eye on you at night, so that’s...that. They said after maybe a month, I can put you in a separate room.”<br/>
Adam just say there, blinking, unresponsive.<br/>
“And I’ll be keeping an eye on you, and I’ll be doing what I can for you.” Shiro continued awkwardly. He took in a slow breath, trying to steady himself. His mind was still racing.<br/>
“Just take as long as you need, ok? I’m gonna take care of you till then.”<br/>
He walked to the chair opposite Adam and sat down, putting his head in his hand. Where to even begin with all this? Adam was with him, hopefully Shiro could give him what he needed. Where should he go from here? Should he tell someone else? The rest of Voltron maybe? They were still dealing with the aftermath of the end of Voltron, how would they take this? Were they even ready?<br/>
He looked up, brushing the hair out of his eyes, and noticed Adam shivering from across the room.<br/>
“Oh. Hold on.”<br/>
He stood up, grabbed a blanket, and wrapped it around Adam’s shoulders.<br/>
“Sorry, I got a bit distracted for a second. Listen, I’m gonna go make a quick phone call, I’ll be back in just a second.”<br/>
Shiro paused at the start of the hallway, turning back to look at Adam.<br/>
“And listen, I don’t know if you can hear me, but...”<br/>
He paused. Was now really the time to be saying all this? Adam just got back from being god knows where and being put through god knows what and this was seriously all he could think about? To be fair, it wasn’t like he expected anything out of it, he just needed him to know. But he couldn’t bring himself to say it. Not just yet.<br/>
“Uh, never mind. Just try and get some rest, ok? I’ll be back in a second.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Confession</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It had been a few days since Shiro had brought Adam home, and still nothing had improved. Granted he should’ve expected that, no one heals from trauma overnight, he especially should know that, but there was part of him that couldn’t help but imagine him magically recovering quicker under his care. It’s not that he didn’t know that things like this took time and he didn’t want to rush things and god forbid make him worse, but there was so much he had to tell him, so much he had to get off his chest, so much he had been stewing on since the day he left for that goddamn mission.<br/>Along with that, no matter how close an eye he was keeping on Adam, he never felt like he was doing enough. He was doing everything he was told—every day, Shiro would wake him up, feed him, clean him as best he could, and keep a close watch over him—but he felt like there was something else Adam needed and he could never put his finger on it. And as the days went by, it was beginning to kill him.<br/>Not to mention he wasn’t sure how to talk to Adam. He was just kind of going about his day telling him everything they had to do, how little it may be, talking to him even though he knew he would get no answer and that Adam probably couldn’t even hear him. <br/>“So, you’re probably wondering how I lost my arm.” He began awkwardly one afternoon. “Well, I got it while I was on the Kerberos mission.” <br/>He chuckled nervously, his face falling. “I got...messed up pretty bad. I’m still coming to terms with that, learning how to deal with it. Guess that’s what I get for not listening to you.” <br/>He gave a halfhearted chuckle. “Fuck, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be joking about it. This is just one of the ways I cope, but it’s no laughing matter. I’m sorry.”<br/>He looked up to see Adam in the same position he was last in on the couch. “To be honest, I kind of can’t wait to get an ‘I told you so’ from you when you come around. God knows I’ve had it coming for a good long while.” <br/>He gave another half-hearted chuckle before stopping himself. “I’m sorry, I'm just making things awkward now, I’ll stop.”<br/>He stood up, walking around the room, doing whatever little thing he could to distract himself—straightening pictures, clearing dust off shelves, adjusting any little thing he could. What was he doing? What was wrong with him? <br/>A few minutes later, he turned to face Adam. “I need to go get something out of my room, I’ll be right back.” <br/>He stopped a few steps behind the couch. He didn’t mean to, he really didn’t, but before he could stop himself, something he had been wanting to say for years began spilling out of his mouth.<br/>“Listen, I know you’re most likely not going to talk anytime soon, I don’t even know if you can hear me with the state you’re in, but I need you to know that I’m sorry. I should never have gone on that mission. I should never have made you feel less important. Because you were everything to me. And every night since that night, I’ve laid awake thinking about what would’ve happened if I hadn’t left you.” <br/>He was gripping the table, knuckles turning white, voice beginning to break as tears stung his eyes. “And I don’t expect you to forgive me, I just need you to know that I’m sorry. God damn it, I’m so sorry.”<br/>He all but collapsed over the chair, hunched over as tears streamed down his face, body shaking as he sobbed. <br/>He raised himself up. Adam was in the same position he left him in; slouched back against the couch, head raised, eyes pointed forward with a vacant expression on his face. Shiro took a deep breath before quickly wiping his eyes. “I’ll be back in a minute.” <br/>With that, he walked briskly out of the room. But if he had stayed just a second longer, he would’ve noticed a tear fall down Adam’s face.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. A Cry in the Night</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Shiro jolted awake at the sound of screaming coming from the opposite end of the room. <br/>Adam was thrashing on the cot, screaming like Shiro had never heard before.<br/>“Adam!”<br/>He practically fell off the bed, landing on his hands and knees, before picking himself up as quickly as he could to make it over to him. <br/>Standing by his bedside, he came to the realization that he was still sleeping. <br/>He was having a nightmare. <br/>“Adam! Adam, wake up!” He shook him gently.<br/>Adam’s eyes snapped open and he jolted upright, finally becoming still, gripping the sheets, chest heaving as he stared ahead wide eyed. <br/>Shiro paused before reaching for Adam and pulling him into a gently embrace. <br/>“It was just a dream, Adam, it’s ok.”<br/>He paused dumbly for a minute, wondering what he could possibly have dreamt about that made him react like this, before immediately remembering the mission. God, he had never felt more stupid in his life.<br/>Being attacked the way he was. Being stuck god knows where for how long. Maybe in a prison, maybe being held hostage, maybe just floating in space somewhere in a busted spaceship. All those years, alone and afraid. <br/>Adam, he thought. Adam, I’m so sorry.<br/>Shiro was snapped out of it by the sound of murmuring coming from the shaking man held against his chest, so faint he couldn’t even understand what he was saying.<br/>“Adam?”<br/>It was getting louder.<br/>“I hate you....I hate you...why did you do this...? I HATE YOU!”<br/>Adam erupted, grabbing Shiro’s sleep shirt and shaking him as best he could while Shiro sat there dumbfounded. It was sinking in now. He always knew Adam was mad at him, and now he was sitting with the consequences of that; he left him, the man he loved, alone, and ran off on a life or death mission, and as a result of that, Adam did the same and ended up in space in god knows where, stranded and afraid.<br/>This was all his fault. Oh god, this was all his fault.  <br/>Adam was screaming still, pounding his fists against Shiro’s chest. “I hate you! God damn it, I hate you! Why did you leave me like that?! You left me alone! I hate you!”<br/>Shiro couldn’t even respond. His breaths were shallow now, and the thought kept repeating over and over in his head:<br/>It’s all your fault. It’s all your fault.<br/>He wasn’t sure how long after, but eventually, Adam was reduced to a shaking, sobbing ball in his arms, clinging to his shirt. “I hate you...god fucking damn it...I hate you...”<br/>Shiro slowly raised a hand to Adam’s upper back, placing it there as gently as he could. He wasn’t sure if this was the right thing to do right now, but he didn’t know what else to do, and he didn’t want to just sit there.<br/>His eyes stung as tears slowly rolled down his face. He just stared ahead blankly, his hand still resting on Adam’s back.<br/>“...I loved you...”<br/>Shiro stiffened at the sentence that left Adam’s mouth. <br/>“I loved you...I loved you...why did you leave...?”<br/>Shiro stifled a sob as his head fell forward, clinging to the shaking man in his arms.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Coming To</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for the updates being so sporadic, I still plan to continue and finish this fic and I have it all planned out, I just get inspired to at random times</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The nightmares continued.<br/>Weeks went by. Adam was getting a little better; he’d been able to move around on his own, even if it was just short distances. But he still wasn’t talking, or eating much. <br/>And the nightmares. God, the nightmares.<br/>They were becoming a constant, coming in spurts where he would have them multiple nights in a row. And they all ended the same; Adam awake and screaming at Shiro as he held him, trying to calm him down. <br/>Shiro was having trouble sleeping, but he didn’t care. He knew he deserved this. He had to.<br/>This was all his fault.<br/>All his fault.</p><p> </p><p>Adam.<br/>Soles pounded the concrete as he barreled down the halls, running into walls and tripping over his own feet.<br/>Adam.<br/>He had to stop him.<br/>His chest was burning from the effort now.<br/>He had to stop Adam from getting on that ship. He was making a huge mistake, he had to stop him. <br/>He wasn’t safe.<br/>He wasn’t safe up there.<br/>He rounded the corner and kicked down the door. <br/>Just in time to see the ship taking off. <br/>Just in time to make eye contact with him.<br/>Just in time to watch him slip away. </p><p> </p><p>“Adam!”<br/>Shiro awoke with a start, sweat dripping from his forehead as he jolted upwards. He sat there for a moment trying to catch his breath.<br/>Just a dream.<br/>A horrible dream, but still, just a dream.<br/>He looked up to see Adam, sitting upright in bed, just staring at him. A bit strange he’d do this at night, but it was technically nothing new.<br/>“Can’t sleep either, huh?” He mumbled, dumbly, still half asleep. <br/>“Shiro, we need to talk.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. A Late Talk</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“What kind do you want?” <br/>Shiro rummaged through the kitchen cabinet after pulling out the coffee pot, still trying to get his head on straight.<br/>The sun was just starting to rise outside, the sky turning a lighter and lighter blue.<br/>And Adam was sitting at the kitchen table behind him, arms folded and actually talking. <br/>“Your coffee is still in here. I don’t think it’s even good anymore, but I couldn’t...I couldn’t throw it away.” <br/>“I’ll just have whatever you’re having.”  <br/>“Right.”<br/>He pulled a bag out of the cabinet.<br/>“Normally I’d say that you should rest because it’s too early, but given the time, I don’t think there’s a point in going back to sleep...not to mention what you said.”<br/>Silence hung over the two, heavy and uncomfortable and inescapable, as the coffee brewed, and continued to do so as Shiro poured and served the coffee.<br/>Taking a seat at the table across from Adam, he finally spoke up.<br/>“So...what do you want to talk about.”<br/>“Everything. Everything that happened.”<br/>“Right. Oh god, where to begin?”<br/>Adam cleared his throat, sitting up and peering with tired eyes over the top of his glasses at Shiro. <br/>“I don’t think you need me to tell you that I was pretty pissed at you, right?”<br/>Shiro didn’t respond, looking down at table.<br/>“I felt like that mission was more important to you than I was. I mean, we were gonna spend the rest of our lives together, presumably at least, and I felt like you were throwing it away on this random life or death mission, like everything we’d built beforehand didn’t even matter.”<br/>“You don’t have to beat me up for that, believe me, I do that already.”<br/>There was a pause between the two as Adam continued looking at him, owlishly. <br/>Shiro gave a heavy sigh. <br/>“I’ve regretted going on that mission every day since it happened. I think about what would’ve happened if I didn’t, how we could’ve been living together, how we wouldn’t be...” He gestured vaguely between the two of them. “..like this.”<br/>Adam gave an empty chuckle. “Trauma’s a bitch, huh?”<br/>Shiro nodded solemnly, trying to chuckle with him but unable to.<br/>Silence fell over the pair.<br/>“Anyway, I wanted to tell you that I’m not mad at you anymore.”<br/>Shiro looked up at him. “I...what?”<br/>“I’m not mad at you. Yes, maybe I’m still a little upset that you left, but I want you to know that what happened after that isn’t your fault.”<br/>He shifted where he sat, looking down at his untouched coffee mug. <br/>“Looking back on it, I feel like it was stupid to hate you for leaving me. Yeah, it sucked, but I shouldn’t’ve put that on you. You did what you thought was right at the time. I just should’ve communicated more.” <br/>“We both should’ve. Don’t you dare think this is just your fault. I can’t even bring myself to think it was even partially your fault. It has to have been all mine.”<br/>“Two peas in a pod, aren’t we?” Adam murmured, an empty smirk on his face.<br/>Shiro returned the empty smirk. “Guess we are.”<br/>The sky was beginning to turn orange now as the sun continued to rise. <br/>“So it’s settled: we forgive each other? No hard feelings?” <br/>“None at all.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Can you tell that I bullshitted the medical stuff at the end? I kept trying to open another tab to look it up but my phone wouldn’t let me and I was afraid I’d lose all my progress if I exited out so I just did my best I’m sorry</p></blockquote></div></div>
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